The Human Target

 Issue #1

Super fun issue. Christopher Chance is honestly a different voice than any other King has written so far. I love how casual he is about everything. With the I love you too note in the flash forward it seems like he’ll keep that mindset even in the face of death. The art is also very special. So fitting for the nature of this comic. Even the cover feels super artistic and expressive instead of just being a pure marketing eye grab. 

Issue #2

“Bwa-ha-ha” is the perfect description of JLI. “Yesterday I was dead. Today I’m in trouble.” Good line. Chance is casual but still holding some cards close to his chest, I like that. Super loving the title cards (title pages?).

Issue #3

This is classic douchebag guy, which I can appreciate to a degree, but I feel like even with the comic from Chance’s perspective, was too much, too antagonistic. I would argue Booster is less about hiding the mistakes and more about having to integrate them as part of his identity. It’s what happens when you’re a known loser. Yeah this issue went too far with Guy imo, but then again…this is a JLI piece as well. Considering that, I’m more okay with his characterization but still think it’s too aggressively one dimensional (so far.)

Issue #4

I’m wondering if Chance arranged his own death in some way. The Ice romance doesn’t feel fully natural to me. The chemistry is just lacking imo. Ice just doing everything to be nice to Chance could be good but who knows? Some of the romance stuff aged better by the end of this issue, like Ice and Chance being so comfortable around each other while Ted blathers on.

Issue #5

The J’onn issue. Well this was incredibly experimental. This is my pick for most transformative of characters to tell a good story. It’s rubbing me a little weirdly here, but this is Black Label and I think it’s fair to approach writing from this perspective. Cool ties into Chance’s origin and the concept of being a human target.

Issue #6

Yeah so we’re really taking advantage of the fact that this is an elseworld’s lol. I wonder why kill Guy and kinda definitively make this non-canon. 

Issue #7

Having the suspect be dead already is cool. For being the Fire issue, this was wildly disappointing. Sometimes it works but sometimes it doesn’t when King write characters with this weird dream logic and dialogue. Like Fire and Chance casually going on a Ferris Wheel ride just felt too outlandish. Even all the things Fire did to try to make Chance cheat felt like the weakest honeypot ever. It just didn’t read well. 

Issue #8

Fire thought Guy was gonna poison Lex…non lethally? Seeing Chance with some fire (no pun intended ugh) and passion was good. Liked knowing that he really did care about the time he had left. I wonder if we’re gonna have another Ice issue. 

Issue #9

Great issue built around Batman paranoia and a wonderful conclusion. Batman as just a shadow in the cover was perfect for this. I like that Chance knew how completely outmatched he was and how it drove him insane. One of the more fun issues out of the past few. 

Issue #10

Manipulating G’nort is the most immoral act Chance has done. I don’t like the whole file thing. It’s a mystery book and you have this almost glaring den of information. I get that Chance had no knowledge of this previously, but him having access to it at any point of the story sours it a bit to me. Ice issue two time?

Issue #11

This motive for Ice is pretty Black Label. I admit it’s hard for me to fully internalize that and the fact that these are variations of the characters we know. I can’t divorce myself fully from the idea of how they’re “supposed” to be.

Issue #12

Yeah I’m mostly cool off this one. Great writing for the most part and just straight up beautiful art, but I wasn’t able to make all the concessions needed to fully invest myself in this story. The relationship with Ice forming just from proximity, Ice’s near sociopathic behavior, etc…It was all just too much. Mainly, I think Ice just comes off awful here, not just not nice, but vindictive to an unforgivable degree. Not an awful King book, but one that shows some of his worst habits.